I'm going to have to call them "Pickle's Clowns" aren't I?

Or that

This is very cool though, you better buy a macro lens, there aren't enough baby clown macro shots in this thread lol.

It's on my list - Along with a microscope I can capture images with.

Cool. Or an attachment for a microscope perhaps?

I'll have to see what I can find... want to get some decent captures though.

In other news my snow / oc is just teasing me now. For the last week the pair has been cleaning their pot and taking turns shaking their bodies as they skim across the wall of the pot. Nothing yet - all dry runs. I hope this means they are getting close.

Pickle Clowns, YES!!!

And so it is written.

its almost like you actually thought ya could name em differently...

LOL its catchy to everyone here.. and think of the marketing on the internet.. pickle jar with a clown in it for your logo.. Get your pickle clowns here !!!

I guess I'll hve to get someone to design a green clown with white stripes for me.

Didn't even attempt it last night. Yes it was hatch night... but it was also game 7 of the NBA finals against my home town team and my local team. Couple of beers... ok, many beers later - it didn't seem like a good idea.

In other news I'm really stoked about my rotifers, my numbers are higher than ever. In a single drop of a microscope slide I am finding 7 - 10 adults and multiple babies. In the past I'd find one or two in a drop after searching around for a couple of minutes. Now I can leave the slide still and just watch as they dance around.

Sometimes life gets in the way. How's the other guys doing.

Bah... the GSM's just eat like pigs they haven't really shown any signs of love - but the sno / osc pair are still hard at work. My money would be on them to lay next.

Something interesting though that I read over on MOFIB is that is the tanks are connected in a breeding system, one breeding pair can get the other pairs started as well. Someone was saying that all of his fish where even on the same cycle. Kinda crazy.

Cool cool.

Oh that is interesting, but it kind of makes sense. I don't know much, but if they had some sort of pheromone communication, that would be pretty normal in the animal kingdom.

OK... so I said I was going to tile the rock - Ok.. I didn't go to that extreme, but I did cover the laying spot pretty well. The place they lay is an indented part of the rock about baseball size so I toook and broke a clay pot and leaned it inside the indention. It's almost perfect and wedged in the spot really well. I added tile next to it and layed a rock at the bottom of it so she can not move it out of the way.

The pair is noticable upset. They are both examining the change and noticably thrusting their bodies in anger. Unlike the mating "shake" this is more of a normal approach or swim followed by what looks like a spasm. I'll keep watching them to see if they settle in or stay upset.

Can you, perhaps, take a video of the angry clowns? I kinda wanna see what they look like mad haha!

If they are still twisted tomorrow I will... tank lights are out for the night.

pics??

I'll grab some pics / video tomorrow. I didn't have time earlier - got in late and tank lights went out at 11.

They'll get over it. Its really fun trying to unpry that pot and switching them with a pissed male. You will see what it means to ave a twisted clown. Enjoy.

Oh and on a side not the stuff from seahorse source direct for the rotifers is working great. A lot cleaner than the nano 3600 and a whole lot less money.

On a side note... the two are not doing the angry dance this morning but they do seem interested in other parts of the tank. I wonder if they are contemplating laying elsewhere.

Are you using the algae mac / or mac plus? It's a powder is that right?

I am using the algea mac. The mac plus has beta glucan which is a imune stimulant that can only be used for so long(6weeks) at a time then you have to switch off to the algea mac. I figured I want to make it easy on myself and just went with the one entity. The guy over there was very helpful and answered a lot of my questions.

Right on... I'll deffinately check it out. At that price it seems hard to go wrong.

He said if stored in the fridge it will last almost a year and a half. Now that's great compared to the nano.

I saw that on the fact sheet... now is this something you premix? or do you add it dry to rots bucket?

You add it dry. Or at least that's what I've been doing

About how much of it does it take per feeding? Looks like it comes in a 50g bag. Just wondering how long that would last compared to nano.

I know you all wanted pics or video of the angry twitch the clowns were doing but they haven't repeated it since the lights came on this morning.

What concerns me though is that neigther clown is paying any attention to the clay pot. They have been hanging out in the nems most of the day. I can see her depositer starting to show... so the question is will she use the tile... the pot... or find a new spot on the rocks.

they will find the place. just give them some time

So I just went to feed the babies and 1/2 have a second stripe and one actually has a 3rd stripe! It's really tiny - the stripe that is. It's a faint bit of white at the base of the tail.

So now I'm wondering if my female is going to lay today. The pair has been hanging out in the nems all morning. They haven't shown any interest in the pot or done anny other cleaning for that matter.

I can see her depositer when she swims but it isn't extended very far at all.

Which female is this?

My reg OCC which has been laying every 9 days like clock work. I wedged half of a pot into the area they normally lay and they aren't happy about it.

If the depositor is out she is going to lay. Otherwise she would of just reabsorbed the eggs. Now it might not happen in a spot you like but it will.

I can see it. It's not extended by any means but it's visable.

She deffiantely has a fat belly... I guess the question is ... where will she lay?

Ah grasshopper the cart can't come before the horse(in chinese voice). If we knew that then you could put it where they were going to lay and it would be over. Just be patient. They will let you know what's up.

I know, I know... the anticipation is killing me is all.

OK... well my horses have had a chance to let breakfest settle in - time to saddle them up and go for a ride.

Have fun riding.

It was a good ride... always is though.

So far no changes with the clowns. No eggs yet and still not looking like they are preping for them either.

about an hour before light out and no eggs yet... I told you guys she was mad!

Did she happen to lay today?

No... looks like she is going to skip this one.

Bummer.

Have they moved back to the pot yet?

Hows the original clutch doing?

the original clutch is doing fine.

the pair is showing no interest in the pot - or doing any other cleaning for that matter.

Good!

Ahh bummer man, I guess just give them time. They moved to it before, they can do it again.

Yeah... that's really all I got right now. I expected to interrupt their breeding cycle this summer when I move them to the new tank. I hope it doesn't screw them up even worse when that happens.

Yea, hopefully not. It will be worth it having them in the special tank though.

I am interested in this concept regarding, clownfish that spawn within the same system influence the spawning of other clownfish within this system. It seems to make perfect sense to me, I am sure there is more to clownfish spawing that we do not know then what we currently know.

How do you think the temp in the new system is going to run ? Higher because of bigger pumps and location or cooler because of more surface area ?